Incredible Hulk, Doodad, Mt. Bandaloo (Pt 10,002'). Between August 2 and August 22 I traversed the Sierra Nevada from Twin Meadows to Hetch Hetchy, via Matterhorn Canyon and the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River, with members of the dance troupe Project Bandaloop, at times numbering as many as 12. On August 3 Heather Baer, Greg Bernstein, and I climbed the red dihedral on the Incredible Hulk, a great route with an amazing crux pitch up a vertical corner. On August 9 six of us climbed the normal route on the Doodad, then four members danced a quartet on the south face of this outstanding Sierra pinnacle. Next, we found an overhanging crack on the spire’s north face, which I led and named Fractal Wind Currents (5.11a). Over the next two days all members of our troupe climbed Matterhorn Peak by the normal route. In lower Matterhorn Canyon, during a recon, I had spied a beautiful dome that we christened Mt. Bandaloop. This appears on maps as Point 10,002, one-half mile southwest of Miller Lake. It is almost 10,002 feet high and mostly vertical, but I could find no trace of recorded climbing activity. During August 12 and 13 Jeff Schoen, Deb Wolfe, Heather Baer, and I made the first ascent of the west face (5.10, A1). The crux was a 150-foot vertical crack splitting a wave of glacial polish. Because of vegetation we were unable to free this one section. We called the route Who’s Your Doodaddy? In the third week of September, I made the 20-mile approach with Greg Sonagere and Heather Baer, and, after some scrubbing, freed this stellar crack at 5.12a. It is the most stunning splitter I have seen in the Sierra backcountry. Our Bandaloop group continued our journey, which included a wild eight-person vertical dance performance off the summit of Wildcat Point and a wonderful wet journey down the Muir Gorge of the Tuolumne River.

Incredible Hulk, Doodad, Mt. Bandaloo (Pt 10,002'). Between August 2 and August 22 I traversed the Sierra Nevada from Twin Meadows to Hetch Hetchy, via Matterhorn Canyon and the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne River, with members of the dance troupe Project Bandaloop, at times numbering as many as 12. On August 3 Heather Baer, Greg Bernstein, and I climbed the red dihedral on the Incredible Hulk, a great route with an amazing crux pitch up a vertical corner. On August 9 six of us climbed the normal route on the Doodad, then four members danced a quartet on the south face of this outstanding Sierra pinnacle. Next, we found an overhanging crack on the spire’s north face, which I led and named Fractal Wind Currents (5.11a). Over the next two days all members of our troupe climbed Matterhorn Peak by the normal route. In lower Matterhorn Canyon, during a recon, I had spied a beautiful dome that we christened Mt. Bandaloop. This appears on maps as Point 10,002, one-half mile southwest of Miller Lake. It is almost 10,002 feet high and mostly vertical, but I could find no trace of recorded climbing activity. During August 12 and 13 Jeff Schoen, Deb Wolfe, Heather Baer, and I made the first ascent of the west face (5.10, A1). The crux was a 150-foot vertical crack splitting a wave of glacial polish. Because of vegetation we were unable to free this one section. We called the route Who’s Your Doodaddy? In the third week of September, I made the 20-mile approach with Greg Sonagere and Heather Baer, and, after some scrubbing, freed this stellar crack at 5.12a. It is the most stunning splitter I have seen in the Sierra backcountry. Our Bandaloop group continued our journey, which included a wild eight-person vertical dance performance off the summit of Wildcat Point and a wonderful wet journey down the Muir Gorge of the Tuolumne River.

Steve Schneider, AAC

This AAJ article has been reformatted into HTML. Please contact us if you spot an error.